The Organised Criminal

Synopsis

Jay O’Reilly returns home for a family funeral after an absence of three years. His father, the most successful smuggler in Northern Ireland, asks for his help in return for one hundred grand. Jay is tempted by the money, and the chance to help his cousin Scarlett escape her abusive relationship. He turns to his friend Martin, a gay half-gypsy, for advice. But nothing goes according to plan...

Praise for this Book

‘The Organised Criminal is a masterly novella of male friendship, family betrayal and economic corruption. By turns brutal, beautiful and funny, it's an astute exploration of a Northern Ireland rarely seen in fiction.’ —Jamie O'Neill, author of At Swim, Two Boys

‘Jarlath Gregory's The Organised Criminal has themes which are familiar - family, betrayal, love and death - but the setting and the characterisations and the telling of the tale make this a distinctive and fresh book, one that can read like a thriller but linger like something much more dangerous.’ —Keith Ridgway, author of Hawthorn & Child

‘The Organised Criminal is a hugely enjoyable read. A book brimming with rage and indignation, hewn from the very darkest of materials but always tempered with well judged humour and sharply observed detail. It is a novel of ideas as well as a cleverly drawn crime thriller. It demands to be read.’ —Mark O'Halloran, writer and director of Adam & Paul

Praise for Previous Work

‘Vibrant and believable... an excellent writer.’ —Ronan Jennings

‘Pithy, hilarious.’ —Eoghan Corry

‘A novel told in story fragments as razor sharp as any metal splinters from a paramilitary bomb … Probably the best gay Irish literary achievement. Ever.”’ —Denis Milholland